Zero waste & enviro living

[Bri MT]

Inspired by K888's tea question, this is a thread for zero waste and environmentally friendly lifestyle tips, tricks & questions.

I'm not 100% 0 waste and I doubt anyone else here is either - please feel free to contribute regardless of where you are on your journey.


This thread is to remain a positive and supportive place,  if you'd like to debate the value of different environmentally focused interventions please head over to rants & debates.

[K888]

Fantastic thread idea Bri! I love that this movement is getting so popular

Here are my tips:
- Woolworths (and maybe Coles, idk because I don't really shop there) run a soft plastic recycling program - take any plastics you can scrunch up basically and they'll recycle them
- Don't put your recycling in a plastic bin liner - leave it loose! Afaik if you put recycling in bin liners it'll just get dumped in landfill
- Get some mesh produce bags for buying fruit and veggies instead of using the plastic bags the supermarkets have
- If you have a dishwasher - instead of getting dishwashing tablets that are individually packaged, get some dishwashing powder that you can just pour in

This Christmas I'm gonna suggest that my family minimises use of wrapping paper. I was thinking we could use newspapers instead (that family members will already have)? Any other ideas?

Edit: I'm also planning to buy some reusable straws to keep in backpacks and my handbag and such so if I'm ever out and get a drink that would typically come with a straw I can just use my own

[Grace0702]

This Christmas I'm gonna suggest that my family minimises use of wrapping paper. I was thinking we could use newspapers instead (that family members will already have)? Any other ideas?

Newspaper is a good idea. Last year my sister bought a bunch of Christmas themed fabric from spotlight and wrapped our presents in that. Of course you don't get to tear it to shreds as you would normal wrapping paper (which is half the fun) but we are gonna reuse it this year.

[Bri MT]

This Christmas I'm gonna suggest that my family minimises use of wrapping paper. I was thinking we could use newspapers instead (that family members will already have)? Any other ideas?

Edit: I'm also planning to buy some reusable straws to keep in backpacks and my handbag and such so if I'm ever out and get a drink that would typically come with a straw I can just use my own

In the past I've used gift bags, nice boxes, or a tote bag to put gifts in.

Some of my coursemates run a business selling bamboo straws (including thick ones for bubble tea) & the main thing I've learnt from them is that if you can get a bamboo rather than a metal straw that's more environmentally friendly (I already had a metal straw by the time I found out )


I used to use reusable mesh bags but I left them behind when I move out and now I just buy my produce loose lol. Apparently microfiber cloths and tea towels are also good for keeping produce in.